


Alphonse Elric and the Fire Stone

by enemytosleep



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist, Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Digital Art, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-01
Updated: 2013-03-01
Packaged: 2017-12-03 23:28:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/703869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enemytosleep/pseuds/enemytosleep
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was drawn for the 2012-2103 reverse challenge at <a href="http://fmabigbang.livejournal.com/profile"><img class="i-ljuser-userhead"/></a><a class="i-ljuser-username" href="http://fmabigbang.livejournal.com/"></a><b>fmabigbang</b>. I was originally going to draw a Ling/Ed <i>House of Flying Daggers</i> style piece, but then this idea hit me and I chose it instead. I ran incredibly short of time, so Suzume stepped in and colored this thing so hard, I still can't get over how awesome a job she did. I sort of figured the crossover would be a bit much for most, but I've got some fun nerding notes below the cut that might explain why I liked this idea enough to forego a fair shot at a story.</p>
    </blockquote>





	Alphonse Elric and the Fire Stone

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Suzume](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Suzume/gifts).



> This was drawn for the 2012-2103 reverse challenge at [](http://fmabigbang.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://fmabigbang.livejournal.com/)**fmabigbang**. I was originally going to draw a Ling/Ed _House of Flying Daggers_ style piece, but then this idea hit me and I chose it instead. I ran incredibly short of time, so Suzume stepped in and colored this thing so hard, I still can't get over how awesome a job she did. I sort of figured the crossover would be a bit much for most, but I've got some fun nerding notes below the cut that might explain why I liked this idea enough to forego a fair shot at a story.

Begin Crazy Notes:  
In the Pokemon world, evolution stones are these crystal-like rocks that radiate a certain power which, when introduced to certain pokemon, cause those pokemon to evolve. I think you can see where I'm going with this in FMA.

After the manga, Alphonse travels East to study the alchemy there while Ed travels West to do the same. In this universe, I have imagined Xing with pokemon, though not in the sense of the games or series they originate from. In this Xing, the pokemon there simply replace any real world animals that would have been there. There are no battle gyms or things like that: people domesticate certain species and use them for things like companionship, protection, transportation, farming work, etc. So a rhyhorn might be used to plow fields while a vulpix might simply be a prized pet (something you wouldn't see a peasant with as they couldn't necessarily afford to feed something that wasn't contributing to the household). There are no pokeballs.

Anyway, when Al arrives in the capitol city, he is summoned to the imperial palace as Ling is dying to see someone from Amestris that he was close to. On his way to the palace, he sees a cute little cat-like creature in a tiny cage in the market place that has very sad eyes. Al manages to purchase the eevee from the vendor, and takes it with him to the palace. While Ling and Al never spent much time together, Ling spent a lot of time with Ed in which I'm sure Ed talked a lot about his brother. Ling being the friendly guy he is, I imagine he would assume a friendliness with Al that might seem out of nowhere to those around him, perhaps including Al. During his brief stay at the palace, Al becomes very interested in Ling's pokemon, which is an arcanine, due to the way it was evolved with a Fire Stone. He becomes even more intrigued when he learns that his new eevee is also susceptible to evolution under the influence of a Fire Stone. He decides to head out to see where the stones are harvested (a volcano mine? I haven't been able to find much information on the origin of evolution stones). Ling decides he needs some adventure and slips out to accompany Al on his trip, and of course Ran Fan follows as well.

Now for the nerding on why each person has the pokemon that they do.

I think Al's [eevee](http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Eevee_\(Pok%C3%A9mon\)) is pretty straight forward. It's cute and cat-like, and is related to his interest in Rentanjetsu and evolution stones. 

[Arcanine](http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Arcanine_\(Pok%C3%A9mon\)) is supposedly based off of the shisa and the haetae. Shisa are a Japanese variation of Chinese fu dogs, who like their mainland counterparts, were used for protection and to ward off evil spirits. In Chinese and Korean folklore, the haetae is a dog-like unicorn whose image was used to protect the region from natural disaster. In ancient China, the emperor liked to use the haetae to symbolize justice. 

In my head, there is a network of growlithe breeders that raise them for Xingese royalty as guardians and symbols of their status. On its own the arcanine might seem a bit regal for goofball Ling, but dogs are dogs, and dogs are often goofballs (plus in my head it was gifted to Ling for being royalty, not something he went out and sought to catch/train himself). Also, I needed for Ling to have a large and obviously HIS pokemon that would make it much harder for them to travel stealthily. As only nobles would have an arcanine, the 6ft tall canine would be extremely noticeable in a crowd. 

Ran Fan has a [cubone](http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Cubone_\(Pok%C3%A9mon\)) because they have a lot in common and can relate to each other. Well, the reason she has a pokemon at all is because Ling insists that she does (I feel like he found or bought the cubone for her recognizing that she would connect with it). I don't think it's against any rules for someone like Ran Fan to own a pokemon (in fact I'm sure some higher ranking guards have pokemon trained to help with their duties), but I do think it's uncommon for someone of her station to own one, and I can see her being against it as she's always trying to deny herself things. Cubone is supposedly "the Lonley Pokemon" because it is abrasive and doesn't go out of its way to help or interact with others. Thinking on it, the poor thing is wearing it's mother's skull as a mask and cries in the night. The poor thing is grieving and hiding behind a tough mask to hide the pain. In my headcanon, Ran Fan has lost her father, which is the reason she guarded Ling with her grandfather back when Ling was a prince. I feel like at times she hides behind her mask, both literal and metaphorical, to keep hidden her insecurities and vulnerabilities. I think it's clear now why I feel she ended up with a cubone. 


End file.
